I remember the day I walked into my middle school library like it was yesterday. I was the outcast kid, the shy girl. To tell you the truth, before this moment, I had been scared to enter the library. The old bullies were everywhere and I didn't like them; I didn't want to run into them; I didn't want to be caught anywhere near them and so far avoidance was working well for me.
But my best friend from elementary school, who unfortunately was going to a different middle school, told me about this book.
"You'll love it!" She squealed excitedly, "It's like Watership Down." She knew that I was reading it; I had given her countless summaries over the phone.
"Okay. What's it called?" I asked my interest peaked.
"Redwall." Thus began the love affair with a series I would have never picked up on my own.
Now here I was standing just inside of the library in search of the book called Redwall.
"It's about mice," I heard her voice in my head, "who rescue their abbey from villains like rats and evil cats... you have to read it."
I took two steps forward, and then looked around for the fiction section. There was a sign hanging over it. It read: Fiction. I headed over. Slowly I scanned every book, ignoring the Dewy system and alphabetical order. It took me three rounds until I saw it.
There on the front cover perched a heroic looking mouse. My face broke out into a smile instantly. This, I thought as my hands reached for the book, would be a good read. I could feel it. As was my custom at the time, I flipped to the very last page of the book and read it. It was like reading a dream. As an aspiring writer, I fell in love with Brian Jacques' style.
I went through Redwall in three days, hungry for more. I went back to the library and discovered that Jacques had written more. I devoured Martin the Warrior, Mattimeo, Mossflower, and many others, gleaming vocabulary, style and technique from this amazing mastermind.
These books are excellent for the eleven-(and up)-year- old in your family. The books put an unique twist on the timeless struggle between good and evil. The characters portray friendship, loyalty, bravery, leadership, compassion and much more. Your preteen will fall in love with not only the stories, but the characters. Some benefits you may enjoy might be an improvement in your child's vocabulary. Jacques understands the importance of challenging his readers even if it's just a little bit.
Jacques packs his novels with so much action; even the diehard book hater wouldn't be able to put it down. If your greatest desire is to see your child lounging around with a book instead of wasting brain cells in front of a television, this is the book they need. I know, I read morning, noon, and during dinner! I couldn't put the book down. Now I want to share it with you. Jacques is a brilliant author and I have learned so much from not only his stories, but how he sets up his scenes, and how he develops his characters, and how he implements figurative language to make his novels jump to life. I hope your children get a chance to experience this to.
